Hiding in the Light
by kristy1013
Summary: While investigating the ruins of a city on a seemingly abandoned planet, the team is separated leaving O'Neill and Carter stranded and fighting for their lives in a battle against an unseen enemy. PART 4 IS UP!
1. Part 1 A cold realization

**TITLE**: Hiding in the Light  
**AUTHOR**: Kristy1013  
**CATEGORY**: Action/Adventure  
**PAIRING:** Hints at S/J  
**SPOILERS:** None  
**SEASON / SEQUEL:** 7  
**EPISODE RELATED:** None  
**RATING:** G  
**CONTENT WARNINGS:** None  
**STATUS:** WIP  
**SUMMARY:** While investigating the ruins of a city on a seemingly abandoned planet, the team is separated leaving O'Neill and Carter stranded and fighting for their lives in a battle against an unseen enemy.  
**DISCLAIMER:** Stargate SG-1 and its characters are the property of Showtime/Viacom, MGM/UA, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Productions. This story was written and intended for entertainment purposes only. No copyright infringement is intended. The original characters, plots and events created are the property of their respective author(s).  
**AUTHOR'S NOTES:** Many thanks go out to my beta reader Jenn! Please read and review, feedback is always welcome, thanks!

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Part 1 – A cold realization

It was cold. O'Neill rubbed his gloved hands together and checked his watch again for the umpteenth time since arriving on P5C-338. He peered up at the twin suns looming overhead in the sky and wondered how it could be so damned cold with two huge honkin' suns shining directly above him. He briefly remembered Carter saying something about this during their two mile trek from the gate to the city ruins that Daniel was now so happily digging through. She had also said something about the planet's unusually slow rotation…and something else about the suns…and more about rotation. Basically it meant that there were only going to be a few short hours of darkness in a 24 hour time period. It really didn't mean a whole lot to him except that Daniel had more time to pore over his rocks.

P5C-338 was next on a list of many worlds that the Ancients could have possibly visited and hopefully left behind some weaponry or something else useful as well. As it turned out, it seemed the Ancients had never been here at all, but Daniel insisted on spending some time in the ruins, intrigued by the written history of its former occupants. The MALP had not indicated any signs of life other than the plant variety, which was definitely in no short supply. Daniel said that while the people who had lived here were probably technologically immature compared to Earth, the city hadn't been abandoned all that long ago. He theorized that something must have wiped them out. His argument to stay became convincing when he pointed out that it wouldn't hurt knowing what could do this to an entire civilization, so he began deciphering the writing on the many crumbling walls of the city. That was nearly four hours ago. He impatiently checked his chrono again noting that only a few minutes had passed.

O'Neill looked around, desperate for something to do or someone to talk to. Daniel was totally in his element and engrossed in translation, and Teal'c had gone with Carter about an hour ago to investigate a nearby river and run some tests. He was just about to radio Carter and see how much longer they would be when he spotted them emerging from the tree line with doohickeys in hand.

"Find anything interesting?" he asked as she carefully set down the testing kit she had been carrying.

"Well Sir, I'm not sure yet," she answered back looking perplexed. "The water tested safe, but there was also something unknown in it. The kit couldn't recognize it but didn't deem it as harmful, either. I collected a couple additional samples to take back to the SGC for further analysis."

Teal'c cocked an eyebrow at Daniel amidst the ruins. "How goes Daniel Jackson's progress with the translations?" he asked.

O'Neill waved a hand in Daniel's general direction. "Oh, you know Daniel and his rocks."

Teal'c just nodded, an eyebrow still raised but more out of amusement than confusion. They walked back to the city together just as Daniel stood up motioning them over quite enthusiastically with that look on his face.

"Hey guys, come over here, this is really interesting!" he shouted with delight. They all crowded around the deteriorating wall Daniel had been examining. "I think I have sort of figured out what happened to the people here."

O'Neill leaned back against a large pillar with a slight smirk on his face. "Well go on. I know you're just dying to tell us."

Daniel turned back to the wall, pausing for a moment before he began. "Well this part here," he said pointing to a section of writing near the top, "talks about a long period spent in slavery and the 'aggressors from the sky'."

"The Goa'uld?" Sam asked.

"Well, not exactly. I think the Goa'uld were here but were more or less frightened away by something, perhaps these 'aggressors from the sky', something that scared them good enough that they never returned."

When no one said anything, he continued. "This part here," he said pointing to another section of text toward the bottom of the wall, "talks about the saviors that liberated them from their wicked oppressors the Goa'uld I think." Daniel turned back to the wall to study it again in silence for a few moments. O'Neill and Carter exchanged a glance, the same question in their minds. What could drive away the Goa'uld where they wouldn't come back or at least destroy everything here? Teal'c simply raised an eyebrow in puzzlement and waited for Daniel to continue.

They didn't have to wait long. "This over here I believe says that for a while the people lived rejoicing in their new found freedom but soon their protectors, the 'Timor', became something causing them great fear. Apparently the elders had been forced to make an agreement with the 'Timor' that each year a handful of sacrifices would be presented to them in compensation for their salvation. Eventually the people revolted, and it pretty much stops there. The writing does repeat several times the words "Vereor Lucis" and another word I can't make out; this is a very strange derivative of some form of Latin. I think." His face scrunched up in thought. "Anyway, I think it means 'fear the light' or 'fear the people with horse-hair', but I'm betting on the first one." He shrugged.

Sam had turned and was looking at another wall behind her with an obvious depiction of people running away from something. "What do you think this means?" she asked Daniel as everyone turned to look.

"It appears they are running from something." Teal'c said, stating the obvious.

Daniel had been staring at the wall. "The light. They're running from the light toward this over here. 'Maneo'… I think it means to 'remain in the night'. Strange."

"Yeah," O'Neill agreed, looking around and resting his hand on the butt of his P-90. It seemed night was just setting in. He was on a planet that had a short night time period and it just happened to come now. Convenient, he thought. "So are we in any kind of danger here? Are these 'timer things' still hanging around?"

"I have no idea really. The writing doesn't say much about them or if they are still here."

Carter added, "The MALP didn't pick up anything registering as a danger when we sent it through, and I haven't noticed anything unusual during our trip to the river. Unusual for an alien planet, anyway."

"Okay then." He looked at his chrono. "Well, if we pack up now and head out, we should be able to get back to the gate before nightfall."

"Yes, sir," Carter said. She bent down and rummaged through her pack. "Teal'c, did you pick up that case of samples we took from the river?"

"I did not Major Carter," he answered. "I am certain I watched you put it into your pack."

"Yeah so am I, but now it's not here." She rummaged through the pack again before checking the immediate area. "I must have left it at the river by accident. Sir, it will only take a couple minutes to get down there and back. I really want to be able to examine them further back at the SGC."

O'Neill gave it a moment's thought. "Okay, I'll go with you. Daniel, you and Teal'c finish up here and be ready when we get back."

Daniel nodded and took out a small digital camera to snap a few more images of the drawing on the wall.

"As soon as we get back, Daniel!" O'Neill called over his shoulder. Carter led him to the small path they had found leading to the river. As they walked, O'Neill noticed the stillness of everything around them. Nothing was moving; not even the wind was blowing. And it was getting colder. He was starting to get an eerie feeling about this place, about this whole mission. He looked over to Carter who seemed to be lost in thought. "Penny for your thoughts," he said, nudging her arm gently.

"I was just thinking -" she started when O'Neill interrupted.

"When are you ever not thinking?"

Carter shot him one of those shy smiles and looked down at the ground. "I was just thinking," she began again, "about what could possibly be bad enough to chase away the Goa'uld like that and destroy the entire population. We haven't found any evidence of predation, not a single creature or animal alive or dead for, that matter. None of the preliminary tests we ran showed any form of pathogen or anything of the like. It's all just really strange."

O'Neill grunted in agreement. "Have you felt anything weird since we've been here? You know, like we're being watched or something?" he asked.

"Actually, yes. It's been niggling at the back of my mind since we arrived at the ruins, but I just can't place my finger on it."

"Hmm," was the thoughtful reply, his eyes flittering up to the darkening sky. They fell back into silence in step with each other. There was nothing but stillness all around them, only the noise of leaves and twigs crunching under foot could be heard.

O'Neill took this moment to enjoy just walking beside Carter. They didn't need words - they had an unspoken communication between them, and he just simply enjoyed being in her presence. Reluctantly, he pushed those thoughts away and come back to the task at hand.

As they climbed up over a small incline, Carter announced, "Here we are." They both spotted the bright yellow STURDY case right away sitting on a small overhang above the river. "Huh. Well that's odd," she said. "I know for a fact I didn't leave it there." She sounded slightly annoyed.

"Old age Carter, it'll getcha every time," O'Neill quipped.

"Had this same problem happen before, have you, Sir?" Carter shot back.

He chuckled. "Good one. What's that now, five to four?"

"Five to three, actually," she replied, a grin spreading across her face.

"Ah. Right," O'Neill said, rather amused. It was a game they had been playing for a while, a game he usually took the trophy for, but it seemed Carter was proving to be a worthy opponent.

Carter walked out onto the overhang and bent down to retrieve the case. Suddenly, the loose ground beneath her boot gave way, spilling her down the edge along with it. She turned quickly, losing grip on the case and grabbing onto a rock jutting out. O'Neill was there instantly, his right hand closing over her left to pull her up. At that moment, the rest of the overhang gave way, and they both plunged into the icy depths of the water below.

Part 2 coming soon!


	2. Part 2 Out of light the darkness comes

Part 2 – Out of light the darkness comes.

Carter came up spluttering and choking on water, gasping for air. She tried to scan the immediate area to look for O'Neill. She knew he had gone over with her, but he was no where in sight. The strong undercurrent grabbed her again and quickly pulled her back under the ice cold water. As she was swept along, she felt something sharp slam into the left side of her face and then bounce off her forehead. The pain was immediately quelled by the freezing waters, but she struggled against unconsciousness while battling to bring herself back above the water. Finally breaking the surface, she spotted a low hanging tree branch reaching out over the water. She readied herself and reached out for it, grabbing on. She held the branch firmly in her grasp as the water raced around her, threatening to pull her back in.

After a few deep breaths of air, she scanned the area for Colonel O'Neill. She caught sight of his form bobbing in the water as he, too, was fighting to stay above the water. She yelled to him as he neared the branch and reached out, their hands interlocking. But the combined forces of the water and his weight tore her away from the branch and swept them both back into the water. O'Neill grabbed tightly onto the back of her flak jacket making sure they wouldn't be separated; he wouldn't let go of her again.

Without warning, a small waterfall dropped them into a freefall and deposited them into a deep pool of water. They came back up gasping for air, and they both spotted a small sandy bed in a cove off to their right. They made their way towards it, working hard to work against the still swiftly moving current. Eventually, they washed ashore and crawled out of reach of the water. Both laid back on the cool sand, taking in deep gulps of air.

"Well that was fun," O'Neill finally said.

"Yeah, but I think I'll pass on round two," Carter replied. As they helped each other up, they realized that their little detour down the river had left them both exhausted. O'Neill stole a look at his 2IC noticing the scrape running across her forehead.

"Carter you're injured. Come here and let me see." He motioned, and she moved closer so he could inspect the wound.

"It's no big deal, just a surface cut I think. It's nothing that can't be patched up quickly with a med kit," she told him as he probed the cut with his index finger.

O'Neill nodded and turned to look around at their surroundings to seek a way out of the cove. Besides the river, it appeared the only other way out was climbing up and over the embankment they were under. He grabbed his radio, shook the water out of it, and hailed the other members of his team. "Daniel, Teal'c do you read?" he asked.

"Hey Jack, where are you guys? Teal'c and I were just about to head down to the river to look for you." Daniel's voice came back full of static but readable.

"Thank goodness for the U.S. Air Force and their equipment," O'Neill murmured. Then he answered, "Carter and I decided to go for a little swim. We're probably a mile or so down stream."

"We are on are way, O'Neill. Are you injured?" Teal'c asked.

"I'm fine; Carter's got a cut to the forehead, but it looks like we can bandage it up alright." A strong wind suddenly whipped through the cove making him shiver. Carter sneezed. "Oh, and it's a little chilly out here."

"Ok Jack, we got everything packed up, and we're on our way. Be there in a few," Daniel replied. O'Neill clicked his radio in acknowledgment.

Nightfall was setting in fast, and it kept getting colder and colder. Why does it always seem to get colder when you're soaking wet? he wondered. He shivered again and looked up at the overhang above them. It would be next to impossible to be able to get up and over it without any gear, so they were effectively stuck until Daniel and Teal'c decided to show up.

It wasn't much longer before they heard telltale sounds of two sets of boots crunching though the underbrush. They kept in voice contact with Daniel and Teal'c to lead them to their location, and soon Daniel's head popped over the ridge.

"Hey guys, whatcha doing down there?" he asked, amused. He tossed a rope line over the edge with Teal'c at the other end. Carter climbed up first, followed by O'Neill. When they reached the top of the cliff, they noticed that Daniel and Teal'c had lugged all of their packs and equipment with them.

"Okay," O'Neill said. "Let's set up camp here. It should only be for a few hours, and at first light we'll head to the gate."

Everyone nodded in agreement and went about busying themselves setting up camp. Once the tents were up, O'Neill and Carter changed into dry clothes while Daniel made hot coffee and Teal'c attended to the fire.

Soon they all sat around the wonderfully warm fire. Carter rummaged around in her pack searching for the candy bar she had stashed before setting off. She pulled out one of the small testing kits that had accompanied her to the river the first time. "I guess I won't have much use for this anymore." she said, eyeing the sample with disgust.

"Has anyone thought everything that's happened so far has been just a little too convenient since we got here?" O'Neill asked. "I mean, there's only supposed to be a few short hours of nightfall, and here it falling right when we are getting ready to head out. Carter first misplaces her water samples then loses them after our little swim downstream, and hey -- I thought there weren't supposed to be any animals here. I keep hearing birds, or rather their wings flapping." He made flapping motions with his hands. "What's up with that?"

Carter nodded eagerly. "I heard the exact same thing, right after we both fell into the river and again right before we made it to the shore. I looked around to see if I could find anything, but I was a little preoccupied with trying to stay above the water at the time." She shrugged and rubbed her hands together over the warmth of the fire.

"That is quite peculiar," Teal'c said. "I have seen or heard no birds or creatures of any kind since our arrival."

"Yeah, neither have I," Daniel added. "In fact, everything seems abnormally quiet to me, eerily silent even."

O'Neill grunted in annoyance and stared into the trees behind their camp. The silence became heavy, and everyone remained quiet as if listening for something to come charging at them from the woods.

When nothing did, O'Neill spoke. "Yeah, well let's just get some rest so we can get the hell off this planet as soon as possible."

Teal'c volunteered to take first watch, then Daniel followed by Carter then O'Neill. Hopefully daylight would come soon enough so that they wouldn't have to make it through a whole round of watch duty.

Teal'c took up position near the fire, eyes roaming over everything in their immediate surroundings. He listened intently to the sounds of the forest around them and noted again the lack of sound of anything alive. He waited until everyone else had settled before making a perimeter check around the camp.

A while later, O'Neill woke to the sound of flapping wings. He lay still for a few moments, trying to determine its source. He crept out towards the fire which was still burning brightly and warm thanks to Teal'c's constant maintenance.

"What is it O'Neill?" Teal'c asked, sensing his friends' uneasiness.

"You don't hear that?" O'Neill whispered.

Teal'c cocked his head to one side straining to hear anything. "I hear nothing," he replied.

"I heard it, too," Carter announced, coming up behind O'Neill silently.

"Thank you," he said. "I'm starting to think I'm going nuts."

At that moment, a large shadow swept over the camp a little bit too close for comfort. O'Neill and Carter instinctively ducked down, and O'Neill reached for his P-90 laying nearby. He scanned the sky above them but could no longer see their mysterious guest.

"Okay, I definitely didn't imagine that," he stated.

"No Sir, not unless we're sharing the same hallucination," Carter added.

By this time Daniel had emerged from his tent looking somewhat confused. "What's going on?" he asked sleepily.

"Colonel O'Neill and Major Carter both have seen something in the sky; I have yet to locate anything." Teal'c informed him.

Daniel squinted up at the sky and put on his glasses. "What did it look like?" he asked.

Carter shrugged. "It's kind of hard to explain because it went by so fast. All I really saw was a shadow, but I definitely felt something fly overhead."

"Yeah, it was a big shadowy thing that apparently only Carter and I can see or hear," O'Neill said. He looked around and was becoming increasingly more irritated as these strange events kept happening.

"Shh wait, I think I hear it again," Carter said. She pointed in the direction of the river.

"Ok, screw this. We're packing up and leaving now," said O'Neill.

Everyone busied themselves packing up what little was left out, and in a few minutes, they were heading towards the gate with flashlights in hand. They walked swiftly, quickly closing the gap between the remains of their camp and the gate. They could almost see it now off in the distance, shrouded in a haze of fog. It was still dark but dawn was starting to peek above the horizon.

O'Neill felt father than heard this time as something swooped over his head again. He turned quickly to bring his weapon to bear in front of him. Now he saw it, or at least all of it that he cared to. He could just make out leathery wings and a large head filled with rows of sharp teeth. Big teeth. Lots of teeth. And claws, large strong claws open and ready to make a grab at them. It was unlike anything he had ever seen before, and it was coming right for him.

Carter dropped into position behind O'Neill as they both opened fire on the strange beast in front of them. Teal'c and Daniel stopped and looked back to see O'Neill and Carter firing at absolutely nothing in the sky.

"What the…" Daniel murmured as he and Teal'c started back to help their teammates.

"Daniel, Teal'c!" O'Neill yelled. "Get to the gate and dial home, and do not turn back!

Daniel hesitated a moment.

"Now, Daniel!" O'Neill shouted again, his voice nearly drowned out by the continuous fire from both P-90s.

Carter moved towards the nearby tree line as another bizarre creature joined the first and somehow managed to elude both of their weapons fire. By this time, Teal'c reached the gate, dialed home, and punched in the iris code. The gate whooshed to life and illuminated the immediate area.

O'Neill had just reached the tree line with Carter only a few feet ahead of him when he heard it. He stopped and looked to his left down the rocky hillside into the small clearing below. In the shroud of dawn, he could make out the silhouette of wispy tendrils, snapping back and forth and protruding from a concealed body. In that brief instant, he saw one tendril lash out and snag Carter right out from in front of him. It happened so quickly, faster then the blink of an eye, and in an instant, both were gone. He turned immediately through the brush to follow.

"Daniel, Teal'c, something just grabbed Carter and I'm going after it. I want both of you through that gate now!" he barked into his radio.

"But Jack--"

"I mean it Daniel, and close the iris as soon as you're on the other side. I don't know what this thing is, but you won't be much help if you can't even see it. I won't risk anyone else getting hurt. Go now!" he ordered.

O'Neill was quickly closing in on the small clearing he had spotted earlier. He heard the stargate shutdown behind him just as the twin suns showed themselves over the ridge.

Part 3 coming soon!


	3. Part 3 Which way this wicked thing walks

Note: I know its took me forever to get this next part up, I've been extremely busy with everything but now things have seemed to slow down some and I've had more time for writing. Thanks so much to those of you have stuck with it and have waited for the next part; your comments and support are greatly appreciated!

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Part 3 – Which way this wicked thing walks

O'Neill ran full tilt through the trees, hopping over fallen logs and ducking under low hanging branches with surprising speed and agility. As he neared the edge of the clearing, he heard the low rumbling of thunder overhead. He spared a quick glance towards the sky, noting the large angry rain clouds forming above him. He picked up his speed and felt the first of the rain drops pelt him like cold wet daggers. The rain began to fall so fast that it was hard to clearly see what was in front of him. He wiped the water from his eyes and continued to survey the surrounding area.

O'Neill blinked and spotted the thing that snatched Carter and still had her struggling in its grasp. He might have missed it had it not been for his 2IC squirming around in mid-air; it was more like a shadow of something than an actual solid object. As the dark storm clouds rolled in closer overhead, shielding them from what daylight there was, he could almost see it better. It was as if the darkness was making it reveal itself, and it puzzled him greatly. He made a mental note to remember it later as he had more important matters to attend to at the moment.

O'Neill was on a mission, one which his only concern was getting Carter back and getting them both to safety through the gate. He brought his weapon up and started pumping off rounds at what he thought was the head of the creature. He heard a shriek and saw it drop Carter from its grasp. Then the creature changed right in front of him. What had once been a big ugly bird-thing was now a large spider-like thing with more legs than a spider was ever supposed to have. He blinked twice, making sure he wasn't hallucinating. It morphed back into another bird-thing and soared off into the trees. He fired a couple more rounds at it as he ran to Carter's side. He knelt down at her side and saw that she was out cold. He checked her pulse, which was strong, and did a quick check for external injuries. Other than the cut she had sustained to the forehead earlier, he could find none.

The rain had begun to assault them in sheets, so heavy at times that O'Neill could barely see a foot in front of him. He gently picked Carter up off the ground and headed for a small cave they had spotted on their way to the ruins when they had first arrived here. It seemed like days ago that they had just stepped out of the gate with the hopes of a quick and painless mission where they just might find something useful to bring back to the SGC. In reality, though, it had been only a few hours ago. They had already endured enough on this mission to last the rest of the week at least, maybe even through the weekend, but for SG-1, this sort of thing was normal. They never could catch a break with an easy mission, always encountering something that wanted to eat them, kill them, or enslave them. O'Neill really wasn't sure he would have it any other way. He just hoped that whatever it was out there didn't want to eat them; the whole being eaten off-world scenario was beginning to get old.

O'Neill quickly entered the cave and did a fast check of the immediate area before setting Carter down on the ground. He checked her breathing and pulse again and found it still strong and steady. He worried slightly at the thought of internal injuries but could do nothing about it until she woke up. He checked around the rest of the cavern, noticing that it continued on behind them in a narrow crevice, but it didn't appear to pose any threat to them for the moment. The cave was damp and cold, but at least they were out of the rain and wind. He looked down at himself and Carter noticing they were both drenched. He wrung out what he could of his jacket, sat down next to Carter, and waited for her to regain consciousness.

A while later, Carter opened her eyes and groaned.

"Hey welcome back," O'Neill said somewhere off to her right. She turned to him and winced as the movement caused a wave of nausea. He helped her into a sitting position. "How're ya feeling?" he asked.

She took a deep breath then answered, "Like I've been run over by a freight train."

"Oh. That good, huh?"

She gave him a small smile before starting to check herself over for injuries. "Well nothing seems broken. That's good," she said.

"That it is," he replied.

"How long was I out?" she asked.

"Uh, about an hour, but you haven't missed much except for the rain." He motioned at the mouth of the cave where the rain continued its assault outside.

They sat in silence for a moment before O'Neill spoke. "Did you get a close up look at the one that grabbed you?"

"Not really," she said. "It's kind of hard to describe, more like a shadow than an actual solid object. I could clearly feel it holding on to me, but it was hard to keep my eye on it."

She sounded a bit disconcerted by the fact that she couldn't clearly see what was attacking her yet she knew it to be there. O'Neill thought back to when he had seen it change shape and wondered if she had seen it do the same. It occurred to him how ridiculous it would sound to talk about a floating spider, but they were on an alien planet after all. "Did it ever turn into something different?" he asked tentatively.

"Actually yes." She sounded relieved that she just hadn't imagined it. "It's kind of fuzzy what happened out there, but it was like a bird once, then it was a like a horse but with six legs. I think it changed into other things while I was wrestling with it, but it was kind of hard to see. I thought it was my mind might have been playing tricks on me."

Since they both had witnessed the creature changing, suddenly the floating spider didn't sound quite so silly anymore.

"I'm still puzzled about why Daniel and Teal'c couldn't see it," Sam said, interrupting O'Neill's reverie.

"Yeah," he answered, waving his hand. "It appears we're still the only ones sharing this little hallucination." O'Neill thought back to when he had ordered Daniel and Teal'c to go back through the gate and hoped for once that Daniel had listened to him. For all he knew, they could still be out there right now beating the bushes looking for them. "Do you think that maybe whatever it is isn't after Daniel and Teal'c in the first place? I mean they never heard it or saw it at all."

"No idea, Sir. But whatever the reason, they seem to only want to attack us," she said.

"Yeah, why does that always happen? I mean, it's always us when things go wrong." O'Neill said, recalling the events of the last day. "Us against the bad guys… and the rest of SG-1, of course."

"Of course."

"We make a good team."

"Yes, Sir, we do," Carter replied, the hidden reference not going unnoticed by either of them. They sat in silence a few moments until a loud cracking noise assaulted their ears from somewhere back in the cave.

"What was that?" Carter said.

O'Neill shrugged and got to his feet. "There's a passageway back there. Maybe we should take a look."

Carter nodded and followed him to the back of the cavern to peer into the narrow fissure in the wall. They began to follow the only path available to them through the cave. At times, the passageway became so narrow that they had to go through single file, shoulder to shoulder. O'Neill squeezed through followed by Carter and was relieved when the passageway widened once again to allow them to move in relative comfort. He could still hear the rain outside beating down above them like an aerial assault. He shivered slightly, still damp from their mad dash to the cave.

They had walked mostly in silence, thinking about what exactly their attackers were and what they wanted. "So we know that they have a weakness. They can be seen in the darkness, they can change shapes, and they can be seen by us," Carter said, breaking the silence.

"Last time I checked, we've eaten, drank, and slept the same as Daniel and Teal'c, though we didn't begin to hear the things until after…." O'Neill trailed off.

"We fell into the river," Carter finished. "So there's something different in the water." She became annoyed again at the thought of losing the sample case in the fall. They lapsed back into silence, thinking of their new discovery and how it was going to help them get off this world.

After what seemed like miles, they finally emerged into another cavern, stopping at its entrance to comprehend what they were seeing. "Carter," O'Neill turned his head quizzically, "what do those look like to you?"

Her eyes roamed over the room before she said, "Eggs. Big eggs."

The small cavern ahead looked like a huge nest filled with eggs. They realized that all the eggs seemed to be resting peacefully in about a foot of water. They stepped down the slippery slope farther into the cavern, O'Neill uttering a quiet curse to himself as they splashed into the ice cold water once again. O'Neill covered the short distance to the nearest egg and noted that it didn't have a hard shell covering it. It was almost rubbery-looking, as if someone had wrapped it in giant rubber bands. His mind briefly flitted to the thought of huge rubber band balls and the havoc he could wreck with one. Upon closer examination, it appeared that the rubbery surface of the egg was interlaced with a web-like substance that produced a glowing yellow sheen. He squinted and looked closer but could not see past the surface. He stood back looking at it and decided that it was definitely glowing softly. He poked it cautiously with his finger and watched as the flexible covering extended inward with his finger. He poked a bit harder with three fingers and was relieved when it didn't break under the pressure. He was beginning to think they wouldn't much like what hatched from these eggs.

Carter was a short distance away examining another egg; this one, however, still had a hard shell covering. It was the same iridescent color as the others, though dulled just a bit by the shell, and she thought she heard a slight hum from within it. She ran her had down the side of it noting that its smooth surface appeared very strong and sturdy. Suddenly, it shuddered and started vibrating where it stood. Carter immediately backed away, calling O'Neill over to see.

They watched as the egg trembled. Then an ear piercing crack erupted from it, and they reflexively pressed their palms to their ears at the sound. A large crack had indeed appeared on the shell, and now several smaller cracks were appearing around it. Bits of the shell began to fall away, leaving behind the same stretchy surface on the egg O'Neill had studied. It stood still once again just like the other one.

As if on cue, a small popping noise came from the egg O'Neill had been poking. Inside, something was moving and poking out, and it almost looked like fingers pressing their way back at them. Whatever the thing was, it was struggling and was intent on breaking free. They stepped back and took in the expanse of the cavern before them. There had to be hundreds of eggs around them with who knew how many other caverns like this one in the cave system. Another ear-splitting crack broke the silence from across the room as yet another egg was shedding its shell.

"Um, Carter," O'Neill said quietly, tugging on her jacket sleeve. "I'm thinking we should get out of here."

Carter nodded wordlessly as they started back towards the passageway. They squeezed through this time with little thought or effort as neither of them wanted to stay around to see what was about to hatch from those eggs.

They reached the cavern opening and stopped listening. In the distance, they heard another crack, and a sweet spongy smell filled their nostrils. It was very heavy and thick, almost enough to make them feel nauseous. O'Neill was sure it had something to do with the eggs.

"We need to find another shelter while we can, preferably somewhere without our little egg friends," O'Neill said. They started back out in the pouring rain, trying to stay low in the underbrush as they made their way silently away from the cave.

Part 4 coming soon!


	4. Part 4 Veil of the Wolf

Part 4 – Veil of the Wolf

Daniel Jackson yawned and stretched his arms out behind him in an attempt to release some of the tension that had built up in his shoulders. He pressed his palms into his eyes, rubbing away the sleep and willing the pounding in his head to cease. He reached for his half-empty cup of coffee and downed the remaining lukewarm liquid in one gulp.

He and Teal'c had been working nearly non-stop for the last day and a half since their hasty return from P5C-338. They had begun deciphering the writings and drawings that he managed to snap pictures of before their hurried departure. It was somewhat slow-going as a lot of it seemed jumbled and mixed up to him and at times just didn't seem to make sense. Not that he wasn't learning a few interesting things about the native people of the planet, he just wasn't coming across the information he needed in order for General Hammond to launch a rescue effort for Jack and Sam.

The debriefing with the General had left them with no other option than to find out what the creatures they were calling the 'Timor' were, what they wanted, and most importantly, a way to be able to see them. Hammond had been just as set on getting Jack and Sam back as the rest of SG-1 were, but he wasn't about to send a team into a situation where they had no means of identifying possible attackers and defending themselves. They really had no idea what the Timor were or why only Sam and Jack could see and hear them. He and Teal'c had argued that if they weren't able to see them, then perhaps they posed no threat to them. Hammond had carefully taken everything into consideration but eventually felt it wouldn't be right to send in a team blind with no means of defending themselves.

Hammond had also dismissed the idea of just letting Daniel and Teal'c go back alone immediately. Deep down, Daniel understood his decision, but it didn't change the fact that Jack and Sam were still stranded there and were being hunted by these strange entities. They had, however, agreed that if they could at least find a way of defending themselves, which meant being able to at least see or hear them, then another minute would not be wasted on organizing a rescue effort.

And so it began, Daniel and Teal'c spending the better part of the day and night going over all the photographs and notes. Since returning from the mission, neither of them had had much sleep and little to eat. Their goal was the same: come up with a way to see the Timor and get Jack and Sam off the planet no matter what it took. It still didn't help negate the feeling that they weren't doing enough. He knew that had their positions been switched, they would have done the very same thing for him and Teal'c. It was what they did. They were SG-1, and they would not rest until the rest of the team was home safe.

"Daniel Jackson, the commissary has once again brewed fresh coffee," Teal'c said as he entered the room.

"Good, I'm about ready for another refill," Daniel answered, frowning at his empty cup. "Any word from Bra'tac?"

"Several actually," said Teal'c, sitting down across from Daniel. "Master Bra'tac told me a most interesting story he remembered from his days as First Prime to Apophis," he began.

"Bra'tac told me of an encounter Apophis once had with a lesser Goa'uld by the name of Kelnim. Kelnim once ruled over the planet Bollas which had been known for its plentiful Xenta Gem mines. Xenta crystals were valued for their beauty and often sought after by the Goa'uld as ornamentation for their regal attire. He often left a small regiment of Jaffa to oversee the mining and would come back only to insure that they were producing his desired quantities of the Gem and would frequently take the lives of the native population in order to make them work harder, feeding their fear of being killed.

"During one of Kelnim's visits, he learned that something had slain his Jaffa, and rumors heard in the city said an 'invisible savior' had liberated them from the Goa'uld. Kelnim and his small group of Jaffa that had accompanied him began an angry attack on the people of the city but soon were confronted with the invisible assailants. Most of Kelnim's personal Jaffa Guard was slaughtered right in front of him, and Kelnim turned and ran like a coward, leaving a few of the Jaffa behind defending him as he made an escape. As he neared the Stargate, he looked back and saw several of his Jaffa quickly approaching him, some of whom were the same Jaffa he had witnessed being murdered by the invisible creature. He didn't waste another moment getting himself through the Stargate."

"Sounds just like a Goa'uld," Daniel grumbled interrupting.

Teal'c nodded and continued, "Kelnim was later defeated by Apophis over a minor territory dispute, and Kelnim told Apophis of this story shortly before he was killed. Bra'tac was present at the time and said he had never seen another Goa'uld terrified of something of this sort before. It even unnerved Apophis a bit, but not enough to at least to make a fly-over in his Hat'ak of the planet. As they flew over the planet, they sensed no life whatsoever. He decided against landing on the planet and instructed his Jaffa never to return there again. There has been little mention of the planet since."

"Interesting," Daniel said thoughtfully.

"Indeed," Teal'c replied.

They lapsed into silence, deep in thought. Daniel couldn't help but be a bit intrigued by the Timor, who they were, where they came from, and what it was they wanted. He was more puzzled, however, with why no one else could see or hear them. He realized he might never find out the answers to some of those questions, and he hated when he didn't have all the facts laid out before him, especially the important ones.

"Have you made any more progress with the photographs, Daniel Jackson?" Teal'c asked, disrupting his thoughts.

"Um a little." Daniel cleared his throat and picked up a few of the pictures that lay messily in front of him. "A lot of it is kind of confusing; it doesn't make much sense and seems to be more like scattered thoughts."

He pointed to some of the obscure writing on a crumbling wall. "I think these here talk about the Timor. From what I can tell, apparently none of the people were allowed to see them and evidently couldn't if they wanted to. Only the select few on the High Council were able to see them, and then only once a year at the time of the sacrifice. They would drink from the otherwise forbidden Wellspring River and would present the sacrificial persons before some of the Timor.

"The Wellspring River was strictly off-limits to everyone, but apparently a couple rebellious villagers decided to drink from it and see what its affects were. They were shocked when they started seeing strange shapes and creatures hovering over and around them. The Timor became outraged, calling for the deaths of many people. The people revolted, deciding enough was enough and that enslavement of this kind was just as bad as the Goa'uld. Those who drank from the river lasted longer than the rest because they were able to escape and hide for awhile, but it wasn't long before the entire population was wiped out."

Teal'c characteristically raised an eyebrow and quietly contemplated what he had just heard. "Interesting," he said, mimicking Daniel's earlier reply.

"Yeah, but it isn't going to assist us in getting any closer to helping Jack and Sam," Daniel answered distractedly.

"The river! That's it, Teal'c! That's why Jack and Sam could sense them and we couldn't. They fell into the Wellspring River!" Daniel exclaimed after a moment.

"It is unfortunate that we no longer possess the samples Major Carter collected from the river. Perhaps we could have obtained a means of seeing the Timor for ourselves," Teal'c said.

"Yeah," Daniel answered. He slumped back down in his chair, his forehead scrunched up in thought. It would have indeed been most helpful to have the samples with them, but he couldn't fret on that thought right now. They were getting close to something - he could feel it. He remembered Jack and Sam saying that they could hear wings flapping, but he didn't recall them mentioning they could see them. Perhaps whatever was in the water only aided them in the ability to see them.

Daniel thought there was surely more to this than he was seeing. He riffled through some of the photographs, his eyes coming to rest on the picture Sam had noticed in the city ruins. The people were running away from something, running from the light into the shadows. Childhood stories reminded him that it was always the dark places that people feared, for what they couldn't see in the dark was most frightening.

"That's it!" Daniel exclaimed, jumping up from his seat. Teal'c merely waited patiently for Daniel to enlighten him on his discovery. "It's the light - the Timor can hide themselves in the light. That's why the people in this drawing were running from it to the shadows; they could see them better in the dark and at least have a chance to defend themselves. And I bet they can alter their appearance. That's why Kelnim thought he saw his dead Jaffa coming for him. "

Teal'c remained stoic, but Daniel knew he was thinking the same thing. If they couldn't be seen in plain light and could change their appearance, they could present themselves to Jack and Sam as anything or anyone. He knew the resourcefulness of his friends and their ability to survive would keep the Timor at bay, but he was worried that the undetectable shape-shifting beings were out there hunting them at this very moment. They would have to come up with a plan and a way to see the Timor -- and fast.

_Meanwhile back on P5C-338…_

O'Neill and Carter moved as silently as they could through the thick underbrush. Thankfully, the rain had let up, but wind was just as bad, whipping at their backs and chilling them to the bone. They caught a few glances up at the sky as shadows soared over their heads moving in the general direction of the Stargate. They both knew that if the creatures had even an ounce of intelligence they would be waiting for them at the gate the next time they tried to escape.

They decided it would be best to lay low until nightfall in the hopes that they could at least see the creatures better. Carter spotted a low overhang under a large bush and moss-covered rock formation just up ahead. They were heading for the overhang when they heard the sound of stomping feet coming from behind them. They sat still and waited while the unknown person or persons approached. Peeking over a fallen log, they saw two pairs of standard issue SGC boots crunching through the undergrowth. They were shocked as they recognized that the booted feet belonged to Daniel and Teal'c.

Part 5 coming soon!


End file.
